Game apparatus



March 4, 1 930.

H. A. WINTER GAME APPARATUS Filed May 13, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l INA/avra@ HARRYAMNTER.

March 4, 1930. H A, WINTER 1,749,653

GAME APPARATUS Filed May 13, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /lrrfwra/z. HARRY AIV/Ivrea.

Arr'rs.

' obviate the Patented4 Max'.v 4, 1930 UNITED -f STATES nanny ANDERSON WINTER, 0F JOHNS, NEWFOUNDLAND GAME APPARATUS Application aiea may 1a, 1929. serial no. 362,761.

This invention relates to improvements in game apparatus with more particular reference` to a device for facilitating the 1setting up and playing of solitaire bridge hands and the object is to provide an improved apparatus of this type the use .of which will time and trouble involved in working out with an ordinary pack of cards.

A further object is to provide such a device of simple and inexpensive construction which will facilitate the convenient and rapid assembly, play, and replay of hands of bridge of every vdescription and which will prove useful both for the study of the game, when full hands are treated, and for'the working out of problems.

The device consists essentially of a novel formA of game `'board and a set of playing 'pieces for use-therewith, all as hereinafter more particularly described and. illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which,

b Figure 1 isa top plan view of the game oard.

Figure 2 is a central transverse section .through the board showing certain of the tion belng taken on the line 2-2 of Fi playing pieces in position thereon, the setiure Figure 3 is a transverse section on t Ve line 3`3 of Figure 1.

p Figure 4 is a fragmentary elevational view Y of a portion of the apparatus showing the manner in which the playing pieces are supported upon racks on the board.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of one of the playin pieces. p

In t e drawings like characters ofreference indicate corresponding parts in the diff ferent figures.

The apparatus comprises a board 10 whlch may be conveniently of rectangular form and upon which are arranged four piece-support ing sections 11 arranged respectively at the four points of the compass thereon.

Arranged at either side of porting section 11 and at the the board vis a piece-holding section 12 and in at the respective sides the centre of the board is an empty space 13 of which the compass points are marked.

such hands in the usual wayv The number of rows of racks in each piece-supvfour corners ofand form rests atthe bottoms of the racks for supporting the edges of playing pieces.

The piece holding sectionsl 12 are each formed with a plurality of rows of piecereceiving recesses 19 which will be later referred to.

For use with the board is provided a set of playing pieces 20 which would consist of a complete deck of laying cards and the pieces would prefera lyibe .made of wood and of about the size of an ordinary domino. The actual size of the playing pieces would depend, of course, upon the dimensions of the piece-receiving recesses in the board as the playing pieces would be made to suit the size of these recesses but it is found that pieces about the size of the ordinary domino are quite suitable and keep the overall size ofthe board down. v

The length of the playing pieces 20 is great-erthan the length of the inclined supporting surface of the racks 14 so that, when in supported position upon the racks 14, the ends of the playing pieces project above the apex of the rack, as shown clearly in Figure 4.

lng section 11 and the number of recesses 17 in each rack might, of course, be arranged as desired but for all ordinary purposes it is found that four rows of racks with five recesses in each rack work out very ysatisfactorily.

Before starting toplay all the playing pieces would be arranged within the pieceholding sections 12 and wouldpreferably be in their respective suits. When it is desired touse theapparatus either to'play a each playsolitaire hand As anypiece is played itlis simply ,tilted over onto the-reverse facev of the rack by strikin thel projectingportion at the top thereo when the piece will" fall into the aligned recess 17 onv player and thus there will be no confusion as-to whether a piece has been played or not.

If desired thel identification of the piece conldalso be displayed upon the top and bottom edges thereof so that the player could conveniently ascertain the identity of any played piece whn it is in its reversed. po-

. carrie out.v T o vin lthe manner in In working out problems withordinary play-v ortions12 so that The raised strips A'racks will, 'it is apparent, form' supports for the bottoms ofthe playing ieces. Y

AThe blank space 13 in t e centrev of the board maybe conveniently used for an desired purpose either for counting tric s or it forms a convenient place u on which to place the problem bein worke out.

A convenience of t e apparatus is that when not in use or between problems or games the playing pieces are conveniently retained face up in t eir respective suits in the four the` setting up and seof hands may be very conveniently those-who have had occa sion to sort out a full hand of bridge and know the time and trouble which is involved the 4convenience of having the four suits all conveniently displayed will be appreciated.

Another great advantage of the device lies which the pieces are played.

ect"

ing cards it is usual to turn down the ,cards as they are played and this is very awkward and inconvenient as it renderse the replaying -o a piece very inconvenient 1n case a mis-l desired to tryout av take 1s made or it *is variation of the play., With -theimproved apparatus, however, this disadvantage does not exist since the pieces are always retained in their original set up arrangement an'd to replay pieces it is only necessary to tilt them back from the reverse tothe front sideof the are played there is no disarrangement of thel original set up.

' From the foregoin it will be apparent that the invention provi es an improved apparatus for the, p 'urposes specified which will inventionwithout 'departing from thereverse side so thatthe face thereof will not be visible to the 18 at the bottom of thel l greatly facilitate. the setting up andplaygng of solitaire bridge hands and the wor out of problems and whereby the objects o the invention are attained.

Various modiications may be made in this the spirit thereof or the scope of the claims, fore'the exact forms shown are to be taken as illustrativev only and not in a limiting sense, and it is desired that only such limitationsshall be placed thereon as are closed in the pior art or are set forth in the accompanying claims.

What I claim as'my invention is 1. A solitaire game board comprising, a board, four piece-supporting Asections arranged respectively at the f our oints lof the compass thereon,

ing inverted V-shaped racks, the apices of all the racks being parallel, and playing pieces than that of the inclined supporting surface of the rack so lthat when in su tion thereon the piece projects a ofthe rack. v 2. A solitaire game board comprising, a board, four piece-sup orting sections arranged respectively at t e four points of the compass thereon, each of said sections formed with a, lurality of rows of upstanding inverted -shaped racks, the apices of all the racks'beinparallel, both inclinedfaces of each rack ormed with a vplurality of separated, ali ed, piece-receiving recesses, and playing pieces adapted to be supported within said recesses, the length of each playin piece being greater than that of supporting surfacev of the rack, so that when in supported position upon the rack the piece projects above the apex of the rack.

3. A solitaire game board comprising, a board, four piecesupporting sections arranged respectlvely at the four points of the ported posive the apex compass thereon, eachof said sections formed ing the two inclined faces of'each rack into a plurality of aligned, rectangular piedereceiving1 recesses, and rectangular playin pleces a apted 'to be supported within sai recesses, the leng h ofeach playing piece being eater than that of the inclined supportlng surface ofthe rack, sothat when 1n supported position upon the rack the piece projects above the .apex of the rack. I

, 4. A ,solitaire game board'comprising', a board, four piece-supporting sections arranged compass thereon, each of said sections formed with a 'plurality of rows of upstanding vindlsthe incline' f plurality of spaced v- 'lo'` i and thereeach of sai sections -formed with'a plurality of rows of upstand lme respectively at the four points of the 'Isa rests for the bottomedges of the verted V-shaped racks, the apices of all the racks bein parallel, both inclined faces of each rack ormed with a plurality of s aced apart, parallel, aligned,raised strips ividing the two inclined faces of each rack into a plurality of aligned, rectangular piece-receiving recesses, and rectangular playin pieces adapted to be supported within sai recesses, the length of each playing piece being greater than that of the inclined supportlng surface of the rack so that when in supported position upon the rack the piecev projects above the apex of the rack, and rais dstrips at the base of each rack parallel to t e apex of the rack, said strips separating the bases of adjacent racks and forming pieces supported upon the racks.

device according to claim 3 in which the board is formed at either side of each piece-supporting sectionwith a piece-holding section, .each of said sections comprising rows of rectangular recesses adapted to form receptacles for the playin pieces, the faces of the pieces being expose when in said receptacles. l

lIn witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

HARRY ANDERSON WINTER.

playing 

